A Friend in Need
by Kara's Aunty
Summary: Frodo fears his will to defy the One Ring may be fading as he crosses the Black Lands, but Sauron, it appears, does not have the monopoly on powerful golden entities... Gapfillery, UK English.


**Disclaimer:** Lord of the Rings is owned by J.R.R. Tolkien, etc. Not me. I'm only dabbling my unworthy fingers in his magical world.

**Credit: **Tuckborough dot com

**Note: **A gift for Antane (you know why, Cousin).

**A Friend In Need**

* * *

o0o

The trek across these blackened lands

Has sapped upon my strength

I stumble as I navigate

The dreary breadth and length

Of Mordor foul and Mordor dark

And Mordor bleak and dry

I lack the speech to curse it now

I lack the tears to cry

o0o

So many days before this dawn

Have seen my spirit fight

Against the pull of evil song

That goodly ears doth blight

So long have I resisted It

This thing upon my breast

But as our journey nears its end

I feel Its keen protest

o0o

It does not wish to dissipate

In fiery lake so near

The place that saw inglorious birth

Now brings It dread and fear

The desperate call of living thing

Grows louder in my soul

It senses death, Its own demise

And fights to change my goal

o0o

'Why redirect the winds of fate?

Their pull will not desist

Because thee try their force to fight!

Their power to resist!

For thee to conquer destiny

Needs naught more than one finger

Around which gleaming, golden band

Doth ever wish to linger'

o0o

Seductive voice! It promises

An end to toil and pain

Its silky notes and velvet tones

Cajole me to refrain

From taking yet another step

Towards Its certain doom

As mountain tow'rs before my eyes

Amidst the Mordor gloom

o0o

I stumble to a trembling halt

And harken to Its call

Perhaps It speaks a grain of truth?

Enough to save us all!

For if I bore It, as I wish

Upon my eager hand

I would remove it evermore

From Sauron's blackened land!

o0o

No more need Men despair their fate

At Dark Lord's threatened rise

For He cannot regain His form

Without his greatest prize

And Elven friends need not depart

Across the Sund'ring Sea

Their pow'r will never wane and fade

If It remains with me

o0o

'Oh truly would thee realise

All of thy hopes and dreams

The bearing of my golden form

Is sweeter than it seems

For thee would wield a mighty friend

That bows at thy command

The only wish my form would know

To do as thee demand'

o0o

Oh how It tries to tempt me now

With scenes of Shire bliss

It shows me faces that I love

And places that I miss

I see It gleam on fingers keen

Oh such a perfect fit!

And for a second I believe

That I can master It

o0o

The air surrounding shivers with

Anticipation pure

Shall I succumb at this late stage

Concede to golden lure?

My traitor hand begins to grasp

For Ring upon my chest

With every dry and hacking breath

Desire floods my breast

o0o

The want of what my heart adores

The burning lust I feel

With every step and every breath

Grows harder to conceal

For I cannot deny the truth

Cannot resist my fate

It dawns upon me sweet and foul

I love what I should hate

o0o

Despair now floods a tainted soul

That once burned pure and clear

The innocence that once I had

Is lost for good I fear

For how would Gandalf and the Elves

Who ever fought Its pull

Lament that they had chanced their fate

To no more than a fool!

o0o

I cannot spare the tears to cry

For those that I betray

No fluid left to fall from eyes

My sorrow to convey

No food remains to give me strength

My wasted form too weak

To sob and wail and show the pain

Reality doth wreak

o0o

Oh fool am I! Misguided child!

To think I could contend

Against the evil of the Ring

And bring It to Its end

I am no more the Hope of all

Than any common thief

Who infiltrates in darkest hour

And brings despair and grief

o0o

But as my spirits sink to depths

I never thought to know

As purest light that was my soul

Begins to lose its glow

A trusty hand descends upon

My devastated form

A gentle voice envelops ears

And turns my cold heart warm

o0o

'It's all right Mr Frodo sir

We're almost at the end

Let's take some rest by this here rock

You're safe with your old friend

I'll keep a watch for any strife

That tries to steal your rest

Don't argue now, you're fit to drop

Your dear old Sam knows best'

o0o

I crumble to uneven ground

As Goodness breaks my fall

Its rocky stones would pierce my skin

But Love removes them all

The boulder hurts my aching head

So Kindness lends an arm

And undisturbed I close my eyes

As Faith protects from harm

o0o

It may be that I lack the strength

To fight seductive Ring

But here in this most bleak of lands

There is another thing

That offers me sanctuary

While I conduct this war

It shines as golden as the Sun

It is what I fight for

o0o

For Sauron's will cannot compare

To Friendship's lasting bind

His pretty trinket not alone

In fighting for my mind

The only gem of any worth

Is lulling me with song

And as my eyes drift to a close

I know he makes me strong

o0o

It may be that I falter still

When dawn breaks o'er the sky

It may be that I often doubt

My courage to defy

The iron will of golden Ring

As up Mount Doom I climb

But golden too is Friend who aids me

Each and every time

o0o

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

_Author's Note_: Hello peeps. Back after a bit of a break which I needed to charge my depleted batteries. In saying that, a few lines of this particular work are slightly out of metre - sorry, there was no escaping it without impairing on the poem overall. Hope you liked it anyway.

For those reading my HP/LOTR crossover 'Not Quite A Maia', don't worry. I've started on the next chapter and it should be posted by next Sunday at the latest!

Kara's Aunty J


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